TITLE: The Sting of the Past (part 4 of 5 + epilogue)
AUTHOR: trista groulx aka dustyiger
RATING: T PG-13 same as the show
DISCLAIMER: these characters are not mine, i have lovingly borrowed them, and will make no money from this fic, they belong to their creator, NBC and the actors and actresses who portray them i also do not own the trademark of Starbucks, please don't sue all you'll get is debt!
TIMELINE: after Bobby dies, and Jimmy sues for custody of Joey
SUMMARY: Jimmy gets a call from Kim while trying to patch things up with Brooke telling him she's in trouble. He soon realises his gambling problems have put the woman he loves at risk. Can he find her in time, or will Brooke shoot him first?
AUTHOR's NOTES: i guess the last cliffhanger worked, you'll just have to wait to the end to see what happens
Jimmy was shocked, and remained silent. Was she really asking him to let her die if Joey was in trouble? He just realized how much he loved her, and he might be forced to lose her again. He now wished he had tried to work things out with Kim instead of Brooke, maybe he could have kept her safe.
"Promise me Jimmy. You pick Joey if he makes you chose. Just promise me Jimmy."
He knew that he couldn't say no. "I promise, Kimmy. It hurts like hell but I promise."
"Thank you. Joey comes first, always."
"Okay, but I love you Kimmy. I think I always have."
He didn't really want to tell her that over the phone, but he knew he might not get the chance to tell her again. He wanted to believe that the guy who took her really was a good guy, in some warped way, but he couldn't be sure. He loved her he always had, and knew he always will. Why did it always take something drastic for him to be able to make up his mind?
"I think I have too. I love you too, and I want to tell you to your face," she told him softly he could tell she was still crying.
"I want that too Kimmy, and I'll do whatever I can to make that happen."
"I'm scared. I've always been claustrophobic and I can't get out of here. How are you going to find me?"
'I'll find a way. Just hang in there." He heard his phone beep. "Dammit. I need to go."
He clicked his phone to pick up the second call. He was surprised when he heard his son's small voice on the other end. It made him feel a lot more at ease that he really was safe and at home with the sitter. Maybe whoever this guy was really was true to his word. If Joey was safe maybe he really did have a chance at finding Kim, even if it was one chance he had a chance.
"Daddy?" Joey sniffled. "Is it true that you're with Mom?"
"Yes, Champ, I am," he told his son, he hated lying to him.
"Okay, can I please talk to her?"
He had to think of something quick. "She's in the bath."
"The bath!? Get her outta there!"
Jimmy realized that he had said the wrong thing after the incident in the tub a month ago. Joey did not like the bath anymore, he took showers now. He kicked himself for scaring him.
"My phone must have gotten fuzzy, and you didn't hear room. She's in the bathroom, I spilled some hot chocolate on her shirt, she's trying to get it all cleaned up, and then she needs to take a shower. She told me to tell you she'd give you a big hug when she gets home, but only if you go right to bed, she's gonna ask Miranda so you have a glass of warm milk to help you sleep, okay?"
"Okay, Dad, and Brooke's not gonna come back again?"
"No Camp she's not. I'm sorry she scared you. I love you have a good sleep and better dreams."
Jimmy could tell that Joey was smiling, that was what Kim always told him before bed, he hadn't told him that in years, it felt great to know that he was making his son happy despite everything that was going on.
"I love you too, and maybe you can come sleep at our house tonight when you bring Mom home?"
"We'll see, all right?"
"Night!"
Just as the line went dead since Joey had run off to bed. Jimmy's phone began to ring again he knew who was going to be on the other end. He had quite the timing, and he wondered if he was somehow tapping his cell phone to listen to everything he was doing. He wished he knew exactly how much this guy was capable of, and then he'd know if he could do more for Kim.
"Where is she?" Jimmy asked his voice more desperate than assertive.
"I'm giving you a hint 'cause I like you. You should smell it soon."
"What?" He was baffled, whatever game this guy was playing it was wearing on him.
"You'd think a firefighter such as yourself would know the smell of a fire starting. If they don't get it under control fast enough it'll bring down the building she's in. By the way, I'll call your friends in when I'm ready. If I hear your voice over the scanner, she's gone."
"And my son?"
"I'm not gonna mess with him. I would never hurt a kid. I hope you find your wife in time." The line went dead.
"Dammit," Jimmy sighed.
He then looked across the street to the abandoned building he had seen earlier. He noticed the glowing, and knew he had to resist the urge to call it. He looked at the two buildings closest to the now burning building, and hoped that only one of them could be where she was. He still wasn't even sure how he would find the right apartment if he could get inside.
Part of him wanted to just call the police for help, he wanted the whole cavalry there, but he couldn't risk Kim's life. He knew she had to be terrified, and he wanted to help her. He just hoped he would somehow be able to find the right place. He looked at both the buildings, and decided the one on the right side first since it was taller.
He knew that even if he was in the right building it would be hard for him to get in and find her. He needed to think of a way to get to her, he had to help her. He couldn't lose her now that he knew what she really meant to him.
He stood outside for a while. It was late, and he needed an excuse to be where he was. He decided to say that he was looking for an apartment, and wanted to know what was available without someone pressuring him to take one, so that's why he was looking around so late. He stood in the doorway writing down the numbers of apartments that did not have occupants. He was just about done when a tenant came through.
"Excuse me, what are you doing?" an elderly woman asked softly.
"Sorry. I'm looking to see which are available, is this kept up to date?"
"Yeah it is, but you know you're supposed to call, right?"
He nodded. "I know, but I am in a roach hole right now with my son. I need to get him out. A friend suggested I should go to the buildings I like at night, and just see if I notice anything, and see which locations I like most for us."
"Well that's a good idea, actually. I can let you in if you'd like."
"That would be great. I think I have it narrowed down to this one and the one next door. As long as they have elevators, my son has a weak ankle and has been on crutches a couple times."
"Well then you narrowed it down to here, they don't have an elevator. Only in New York City can you find a nine story walk up."
Jimmy laughed. "Well thank you. That should make it easier. So have you seen any bugs around?"
"I've lived here since it was built, and I can honestly say I've not even seen one bug. It's a good place to live. I hope to see you around."
"Me too," Jimmy said forcing a smile because he was so worried about Kim.
He was glad to be inside. He assumed that his bookie likely owned the building and had hidden Kim in one of the empty apartments. He had a list of twenty-five to choose from, and there were fourteen stories for him to get through. All he wanted was to get to her. His phone rang again.
"So you got in. I got the master key, but you get one door, one chance, then we start the game again," said the voice on the other end.
"Okay," said Jimmy unsurely.
"I better not get any complaints from my legal and paying clients or I might decide to call the whole deal off." Once again the line went dead.
Jimmy sighed, and looked at his list. He had one chance out of those for it to be the right place, and get Kim back. He couldn't explain to his son that it was his fault that his mother was missing, and might not come home. He wondered if maybe she would be able to knock on the doors of the empty apartments and see if she heard him. His phone began to chirp Kim's ringtone.
"Kimmy?" he said.
"Jimmy he called again. He said you have one chance to find me in here, or he'll move me."
"I'll find you Kimmy. I figure you're in a vacant apartment. I have a list of all the ones that are vacant right now. If I knocked on the door do you think you'd hear it?"
"I think so."
"So call me if you hear someone knocking on the door."
"All right, I hope there is enough battery power left."
"There will be."
"Love you Jimmy. I hope I hear you soon."
"I love you too. You will."
Jimmy hung up the phone, and looked at the list. He decided to try the floor with the most vacancies first. He took the elevator up there and started knocking on the doors hoping he wouldn't disrupt anyone. He sighed when he got to the last door on the floor and still hadn't heard his phone ring.
He then decided to pick the floor with only one empty apartment on it, there weren't many of those. When he had finished with that his phone rang, as he waited for an elevator. It was Kim's ring but it had been a few minutes since he had knocked on the last door.
"I heard something," Kim said.
"Just a second", he almost ran back to the last door, and knocked on it.
Kim let out a sad sigh. "No, only what I heard through the phone. It wasn't you. What if it was him Jimmy?"
She sounded really worried, but he knew he couldn't let on how scared he was too. He didn't know what this guy had planned, and it could have been him, trying to scare her, or worse. Maybe if it took long the bookie would take her again. He couldn't go home without her. He would never be able to explain it to Joey.
"He didn't give me a time frame, Kimmy, and I haven't used my one chance. I'll find you."
"I smell smoke, I'm really scared now Jimmy. You have to find me." She felt tears falling down her cheeks again "My phone is starting to beep."
"I'll find you Kimmy. I want to stay on the line with you, but if I do that I won't find you at all. Call me if you hear anything."
Jimmy started to feel a little frantic, knowing he was running out of time to make an educated guess, and it might end up being a stab in the dark. He was terrified her phone was about to die, and she could smell smoke from the building across the street. He knew that she had to be on side closest to abandoned building He looked at his list, and kept going forward on it. He had seven doors left he knocked on one and heard his phone chirp.
"Jimmy is that you?"
"I think so I'll knock again."
He knocked three times on the door.
"Jimmy!? I thin-" the line went dead.
His heart sunk. This was it. This was his best chance, and he was pretty sure that he had it right this time, but there were still six other doors she could be behind. He didn't want to get it wrong. He called her phone again, and he got her voice mail right away. He hoped that meant it had died and that someone hadn't hung it up and taken her away to somewhere else where he'd have no chance at finding her.
He stared at his phone for a long moment, and then went to his call log, to the number that wasn't in his phone book that had been calling all night. He hit the send button. He knew that this was it. This was his one chance, if he was wrong the game would start again, and it would be a lot harder this time. He had never been so scared in his life.
"I think I found her," Jimmy said.
"You think?" asked the voice on the other end.
"I'm almost sure."
"Almost?"
Jimmy sighed. "She's in apartment 402. Now let me get her."
"No."
"NO?!" Jimmy's heart sunk, this was his best chance, and now this guy was saying, no he couldn't get her. He needed her. You said I had one chance you bastard!"
"You do. Go back to the Starbucks. If you got it right then she'll be there in twenty minutes. If you got it wrong you'll get a call." The line went dead.
end part 4